It looks like Baron Davis and Tim Thomas will play in tommorrow's season opener. Officially they are probable, which means that they could technically sit out if they have any kind of setback, but after talking to coach Dunleavy and both guys after practice today, it sounded pretty solid that they'd be out there. Both went through the full practice today.

Marcus Camby (bruised heel) is officially listed as ``doubtful'' and I wouldn't be surprised, at this point if he missed the first two or three games.

This still begs the question: Will Thomas start at the 4, or will Dunleavy insert Ricky Davis into the lineup, and slide Al Thornton over to the PF?

Which would you prefer?

Posted Wednesday, October 29 at 3:20PM

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My immediate assumption was that Thomas would simply start at PF if Camby was sitting. Then it hit me: WHY? Can Thomas really handle Gasol on the defensive end any better than Thornton? Will he grab more boards, necessarily?

Thornton is a natural 3, but as a pseudo-PF, he can be deadly against soft bigs (the way he punished Bosh in Toronto was a thing of beauty) Last season, Al was forced to play the four in decidedly slow-tempo, half-court fashion, and without the assistance of an NBA PG to boot. It wasn't fun or effective. But let him run alongside Baron and Thornton's advantages (speed, strong finisher) could really present some problems for opposing bigs.

This isn't to say that they should play all 82 games sacrificing size for speed. A healthy Kaman/Camby can be imposing (admittedly still an assumption at this point). But opening night against a pair of seven-footers on the second day of a back-to-back? Here's hoping for a track meet.

I agree with trying to run against the Lakers being in the 2nd night of a back to back because they probably aren't in great shape. I'd say go for Thorton at the PF because we know Tim is kinda not in perfect health. If it works to start the quarter (and the impress the fans), then great, if not then try something else. Dunleavy said we'd run more, why not start out the gates and show what we got!

TT @4 - Al @3 - Did you see that LAL game last night vs Por? The Lake Show is a track meet - can't afford to start Skinner - TT is perfect to match the speed necessary to keep up the pace of the game tonite.